Discovering and Unlocking your Talent
Mentor Speak
This series of short write ups provide pearls of wisdom from Global Leaders and Mentors who are associated with us. They bring in a practitioner’s perspective and serves as an effective combination of advice that has authenticity, experience and most importantly – relevance.
During my childhood, our grandmother's arrival at our home was the most cherished weeks and months. She divided her time between her sons and daughters, and my brother and I eagerly looked forward to her visit. There were three big reasons for our excitement whenever she visited. The first reason was that she brought lots of delicious traditional Bengali savouries made by her own hands. The second reason was a big one. During her stay at our home, her son (our father) did not have the permission to scold us even if we did something naughty (and that was quite often). However, the third reason was the biggest one. Our grandmother was an excellent storyteller, and every evening she shared a new story with us. We listened with rapt attention. Her description was so powerful that we could visualize the entire story like a movie. Let me share one such story, which I remember vividly, even after so many decades.
Once upon a time, there was a group of animals who were great friends. They were not very educated, so they decided that what they needed was a school, a school of animals. So, they started one. Somebody said that the first thing to be done was to set up a curriculum committee. The bird said that flying should be in the curriculum, and flying lessons were included. The fish said swimming classes should be added. The squirrel said that vertical tree climbing must be offered. The rabbit said running was a must. All the animals suggested their specialties for the curriculum. But then they made the terrible mistake of making all the courses compulsory.
The rabbit was a great runner. No one could run like the rabbit, but they took him up to a branch of a tall tree and said, "Fly rabbit." The rabbit jumped, tried to fly, broke a leg, and suffered brain damage. He got pass marks in flying because of effort, but he couldn't even run as he did before and received only pass marks there too. The bird was a great flyer. He could fly loops and dive like a freak, but they made him dig holes in the ground like the field-mouse, and he broke his beak and wings. He failed in the hole, digging and barely passed in flying. And so, it went. The squirrel almost drowned in his swimming course, and the jackal broke his back in vertical tree climbing, but they all got pass marks for effort and attendance – when they were physically fit. The gold medallist was the bat who could do little of everything but nothing well.
At a young age, one did not understand the profound meaning behind this simple story. But as one grew older, this particular story started making much sense.
Can a person be excellent in all fields, or should he discover his unique talent and unlock the true potential?
Just ponder for a moment on the following questions:
Do you ever wonder why you make individual choices?
Why you do what you do?
Why do you like certain things?
Why are you better at some things than others?
THERE’S A REASON. IT'S YOUR TALENTS.
What is Talent? Talent is a naturally recurring pattern of thought, feeling, or behavior that can be productively applied. Our talents help us understand who we are. They describe us. They influence our choices. They direct our actions. They explain why we are better at some things than others. They help us filter our world.
Each individual has natural talents they bring to the table, and we can understand through the lens of strengths, which is good at what.
What comes to each naturally? Who is an inherently good executioner vs. who is a naturally good relationship builder vs. who is a natural strategic thinker vs. who is a naturally good influencer?
We often take our most powerful talents for granted, and many of us may not be fully aware of them. The key to success is fully understanding how to apply your most extraordinary talents and strengths in your everyday life.
How can we discover our talent? There are five simple ways to assess that. Let us examine them.
YEARNING: What kind of activities are you drawn to most?
RAPID LEARNING: What kind of activities do you seem to pick up quickly?
FLOW: In what actions did time seem to "fly by" for you?
GLIMPSES OF EXCELLENCE: During what activities you had moments of excellence & you think, "How did I do that?"
SATISFACTION: What activities give you a 'kick' either while doing them or immediately after finishing them & you think, "Oh, when can I do that again?"
A person's direct path to individual growth and improvement begins with a primary investment in their most incredible talents. Our talents are an instinctive and intuitive source of wisdom and power. When we start to intentionally tap into this power, we gain the ability to transform our world – (EVERY MOMENT, EVERY INTERACTION, AND EVERY DAY).
As a Business and leadership Coach, my endeavour has always been to help my clients discover their unique talents (or what I call as their Super Power).
What have my clients shared with me when I have helped them to discover and unlock their talents? They reported that:
They understood the depth of their talents; realized they were sitting on a goldmine & how they can 'unlock' their natural potential
It energized them immensely to see the possibilities that can unfold if they fully optimize their talents
Some of their self-perception got confirmed
It brought them in touch with their subconscious in terms of their latent talents, and that helped them immensely
It helped them do course corrections in their career
It enabled them to do their best every day by using their talents
And once again, I get reminded of the story narrated by my grandmother and its essence –
A bird cannot replace a squirrel and vice versa.
